Quantum Spot academy: A physics resource.

I am so excited to share with you about Quantum SPOT academy by Parker Ruth a fellow homeschool student.  Read below to learn more!   This is an excellent resource for all students.  I hope you check it out.  

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The mission of Quantum Spot Academy is to provide the inspiration, resources, and environment for students to develop an interest in physics and explore it for fun. By means of videos and a website with additional resources, I will introduce the basics of contemporary physics concepts like quantum mechanics, relativity, and the standard model. I hope to foster a love of physics and, more generally, a love for learning.

Ever since I was very young I have wanted answers to life’s biggest mysteries. Almost by accident, I stumbled upon physics and was delighted by the clarity that it provided. I quickly developed a passion for physics and wanted to share it with other people. I gave a talk at my homeschool coop about antimatter, which was very well received. That experience sparked the initial concept of my project, which was then matured and clarified as I prepared for being part of the Ambassador Program.

Physics is a useful tool and a foundation for technology, but physics is also a way of thought. It sharpens one’s understanding and builds a methodology of analytical and abstract thinking. To me, physics is much more than a set of models; it is the ultimate effort of humankind to understand our observations of the universe. Physics represents all that is certain, all that is possible, and all that we can be. It has inspired me and it is my sincere hope that it inspires others as well.

When I’m not developing Quantum Spot Academy, I can be found learning about physics, playing the piano, eating frozen mangoes, listening to Great Courses lectures, juggling, programming in Python, and talking to people.

Parker Ruth

Quoted from the Davidson Website. 

More Q & A

I have been getting some questions on how to send things to me.  I thought this post might help. 

1.  Would you rather I send you my material by email or postal mail?

It makes absolutely no difference to me.  Really. ☺  Do whatever is easiest for your family.  I am happy to accommodate you either way. 

2. What digital files can you read?

I am able to open PDF, Word, and JPEG files.  If you have a Macintosh computer your best bet is PDF.  I do have trouble when people send me zipped Mac files.  I also can not read Works files. 

3.  How should I send digital files to you?

First, you should group them by subject.   I need all the math together, writing together, etc.  You can send them by email, you can upload them to Dropbox, you can share a Google file with me, and you can share with me on Google Plus privately (so only I can read it).  You can send me a disk or memory stick with your files on it as well.  There are many options.

4.  Can you help me figure out how to home educate, make a transcript, or fill out the Letter of Intent?

At this time I am not helping my families home educate or fill out Letters of Intent.  I only review portfolio assessments.  My blog is filled with helpful tips, and I have a post on filing out the Letter of Intent to Home Educate.

Portfolio or Standardized Test?

A question I receive often is “Should I give my home educated student a standardized test at the end of the year, or complete a narrative portfolio assessment to fulfill the end of the year requirement for homeschooling in Ohio?”   I usually reply it depends on what kind of information you hope to gain.   One way to look at this question is to think “Do you want one picture of one moment in time, or a running movie with many pictures taken over time? “

A standardized test is a “snapshot “of a student at one moment in time.  A standardized test is scored in a consistent manner so you are able to compare your student to a group of students in the same grade who have taken the same test.  You usually receive a percentile ranking which tells you what percentage of the students taking the test your student scored better than.  For instance, if your student was in the 33rd percentile in math then your child scored better than 33 percent of students in the sample group from the publisher who took this test in math.

  

A standardized test is limited in that it is more likely to tell you what your student does not know versus what they do know or have learned this year.  A standardized test also dictates what the publisher feels is important for your student to know.  It does not take into account what your student has learned this past year.

A narrative portfolio assessment is a group of work samples that reflect your student’s growth and progress over the last year.   It consists of many “snapshots” that come together to reflect what your student has accomplished this year.  You, as parent educator, get to showcase what your student has accomplished this year.

Besides celebrating what your student has accomplished, a portfolio also helps you to plan instruction for the next year.   For instance, you realize you concentrated on learning your math facts, but did not spend as much time learning how to solve word problems.   Next year, you commit to working on more problem solving.  You look at your book list and notice that your student has mainly read adventure stories this past year.  You commit to introducing him/her to biographies, non-fiction, and or some poetry next year to vary his/her reading diet.   I believe this is time well spent.  You are assessing your student’s needs and planning instruction based on those needs.

A narrative portfolio assessment also gives you a chance to present what your child has accomplished to a certified Ohio teacher.  My hope is that when I review your student’s work I bring a different “set of eyes” to your student’s portfolio.   As an assessor, I try to provide encouragement to parents, insight into your student’s growth, and provide feedback to help you plan future instruction for your child.   My goal is to partner with you to celebrate your student’s accomplishments and encourage you on your home education journey.

Please click here to get started.  

Guest Post: 4 Math Activities for the Pool by Patricia Sarmiento

This guest post is by Patricia Sarmiento.  You know how I love math and I am tickled to incorporate math into my summer pool times. 

4 Math Activities for the Pool

            Don’t get me wrong, summertime should definitely be action-packed and fun for the kids. But I’ve never been one to pass up a great learning opportunity, and time at the pool provides many. First, it’s a great time to teach your kids about water safety as they strengthen their swim skills. If you’re looking for information on pool safety, this all-in-one guide on recreational swimming safety is a great place to start.

            Then, there are also the many learning-based pool games. What’s great is that many of them are so much fun that the kids don’t even realize they’re playing an educational game. Here are a few math-based games that I played with my kids last summer, and that I’ll definitely be trying out again this year:

Swimming Pool Math Toss. From BlissfullyDomestic.com, this is a great game to play with elementary school-age children. Buy a few plastic Frisbees and sponges. Write numbers on the backs of the Frisbees and corresponding equations on sponges. Then, put the Frisbees in the pool and have the kids toss the sponges at the correct Frisbees. If the kids are older, you can use more challenging equations or larger numbers.

Fishing Fun! This is a fantastic multi-subject lesson. It prompts you to take the kids pretend fishing at the pool. Make your own fishing poles using string, sticks, and paper clips and have the kids go fishing. Use the worksheet provided by ProjectWild.org to help the kids imagine what kind of fish they might catch. When they do catch something, have them “measure” what they’ve caught by using the fish on the worksheet.

In addition to being a creative thinking and math lesson, it is a great opportunity to teach your kids about how to be safe around ponds, lakes, streams, and other natural bodies of water. 

Math-driven Swim Lesson. Academy Swim Club offers several ways to turn your kids’ swim lessons into math lessons. For example, you might ask them to swim a path in a certain shape or ask them to swim x + y number of laps. Connecting their swim lessons to math concepts is a great way to challenge their minds as they become stronger swimmers.

Swimming Pool. From the University of Cambridge, you can either use the provided diagram to use this lesson on a rainy day or use the actual steps of a pool. It comes with several questions for you to ask your “students” to help you guide them through the lesson. The activity offers a fun way to help younger kids work on counting and to introduce them to negative numbers. It also offers a nice opportunity to discuss with young children the safest ways to enter the pool.

I want my kids to experience learning during the summer, but because swimming is such a valuable skill, I also want them to spend as much time as possible becoming stronger swimmers. With these activities, they can do both.

Patricia Sarmiento is a health and fitness blogger. A former high school and college athlete, she loves writing about health, wellness, fitness, and other health-related topics. She and her family make living an active lifestyle a constant goal. They live in Maryland.

Photo credit: Via Flickr – by flattop341